Hackney Showroom today announces the world première of for all the women who thought they were Mad by Zawe Ashton which will open at Stoke Newington Town Hall – marking a new partnership with the London Borough of Hackney to bring theatre to Stoke Newington Town Hall. Directed by Jo McInnes it opens on 17 October, with previews from 14 October, and runs until 9 November.
“they like to see us fall
to slip on branches full of fruit we have not tasted”
Lately, it’s small things. Pop songs. The radio. Every day anguish, becomes madness. Call on your family. Call on the ancestors. Can they guide you home?
“we are pearl and earth and root
we know ourselves to be natural and complete
carved from rock that floats
but we should still be careful what we wish for
some of us can sink in the upstream”
Zawe Ashton said today, “I am a woman of colour who has written a play about women of colour. It’s a play about many things, but at its centre is an investigation into the fallout of colonialism and it’s resounding impact on the women of the African diaspora, specifically women living in the United Kingdom. It looks at how these women are constantly maltreated and marginalised by the institutions in which they operate or ask for professional help. Their workplaces, their hospitals or GP’s office – and so on. It’s a play about cultural bias and systemic oppression. Black women are the empathetic centre of the piece, their emotions are our emotions. Their struggle is our struggle as an audience.
Nina Lyndon and Sam Curtis Lindsay have, with director Jo McInnes, seen complex and vital questions that need to be raised. If it wasn’t for their refreshing approach to the event of theatre – I wouldn’t be writing this. I have finally found a home for my play and for myself as an artist and a team of collaborators that prioritise creating theatre for a wide and inclusive audience.”
